Thank You
by Kolie
Summary: After finding some old letters in his dormitory, Edward has a few questions for a certain person. Feelings are finally let out and a relationship is started. [oneshot, shonenai, inspired by Reply by Staind]


Yeah…I know it's a one-shot and that it's not a _Gravitation_ fan fiction, but I love Full Metal Alchemist just as much and decided to take a shot at it. And I know that you all don't really like song fics, but it's gonna be longer than a usual song fic and feel more like a normal one-shot. Besides, I think this song goes great with the relationship I'm gonna use in here…

Oh…and this is based five years in the future, but I haven't seen the whole series yet so I don't know how it's gonna end. If you think that it sounds off, that would be why…

**Disclaimer: **No, I don't own FMA, either. The song used here is "Reply" by Staind…

**Thank You…**

Edward walked through the dark, desolate city streets of Central, rain sliding down his body in sheets. No one had taken the time to go outside today, deciding instead to stay inside where it was warm and rain free. But Edward couldn't stand staying inside, not while there was nothing to do.

He slowly walked the streets of Central, even decided to sit down in the park for a bit and let the rain soak his upturned face. As he walked, he gazed into the warmly lit homes with their flames dancing in hearths and families gathered around the supper table. And they gazed sadly back at him, the strange blonde man in white who was walking in the rain, but Edward always moved on before they got a chance to recognize who he was.

_I have seen  
too many sad eyes look at me  
the eyes that set me free,  
all the places that I've been._

Scowling slightly, Edward used a wet hand to push his hair out of his face. He hardly ever wore it in a braid anymore,chosing to letit fall down over his shoulders instead. Mustang kept telling him that if he wasn't going to wear it back then he needed to cut it, but Ed just couldn't bring himself to do it.

Closing his eyes, Ed hung his head and checked the small watch he wore around his wrist. Twelve-thirty. He sighed. It was time to get back to Headquarters before Mustang had a fit over him again. Edward stuck his hands into the pockets of his greyish-white jacket and began his slow trek back toward his temporary home.

When the oversized entry arch of Headquarters came into view, Ed sighed and kept his eyes locked on the ground. He never walked with his head up much anymore. He didn't want anyone to look into his eyes and see the war torn child that lingered in the amber orbs.

He began his trek up the stairway to hell. Step after step, Edward regretted his decision of showing up just for the sake of Mustang. The man wouldn't think anything of it anyway. He'd probably just grumble and bitch at Ed for some stupid reason and then show him off to the crowd, declaring that this was the famous "Full Metal." Edward groaned. After seven years, he would've thought the raven-haired man could let up on him a bit.

A cough. Edward looked up, spotting a pair of black boots on the steps just ahead of him. He moved his eyes up further, surveying the soaking wet body standing before him. When he got to the face, he blanched. He hadn't recognized the man out of his uniform. His eyes locked with the grey eyes of his distraction, a small scowl on his face.

"What do you want?" he spat, furrowing his brow when the man before him frowned.

"I never knew that I needed a reason to stand outside, Full Metal," the man said sarcastically.

Edward's scowl deepened. "You don't strike me as the kind of person that would stand out in the rain just for the hell of it, Mustang."

Roy frowned. "I was just waiting for you to show up," he said, his eyes boring into Edward's.

Edward stared back in silence, sighing slightly when Roy turned and headed into the building.

"Come on, Edward. We're going to be late."

Edward nodded and followed Mustang into the building. When the cool air inside hit his rain soaked body, Edward shivered violently. Mustang stopped and threw him a glance over his shoulder.

"If you want to change, go change," he said. "I'll cover for you this time." With that, he walked off, leaving Edward alone in the corridor.

Ed rolled his eyes and shook his head, sulking off to find his dormitory and some clean, dry clothes. After climbing several staircases and walking down too many corridors to count, he pushed his door open and slammed it closed behind him.

He kicked off his shoes and peeled the wet jacket from his shoulders. He shed his clothes until he was just standing there in his boxers, which had surprisingly managed to stay dry. Ed dug through his drawers until he found a pair of black pants and a black tank top, both of which he pulled on before he brushed his hair out. When he threw the brush down onto his desk, a few papers fell onto the floor. Grumbling, Edward bent over and picked them up.

They were letters that he hadn't even remembered reading. Hell, two of them weren't even opened. He wondered who they were from. There was no return address on any of the envelopes, just "Edward Elric" written out in perfect calligraphy. Ed plopped down onto the floor and pulled one of the open letters from its envelope, carefully smoothing out the parchment paper.

_Edward,  
I'm not writing this to you as a way to try and force you to return to Central or to the Military, but we need you. Thing are going awry and we need the help of everyone that we can get. I know that you have no reason to return to this place and no reason to even want to read something from a bastard like me, but, if you've even gotten to this point, please return. Like I said, we need you.  
Mustang_

Edward frowned. This letter was from back when he had decided to leave the military and go off on his own. When Alphonse had left him to be with Winry, there was no reason for him to stay in a place that held so many memories. But, after he had received this letter, he had returned. Why? He didn't even know himself. But he wondered if Mustang even remembered writing these. Had Mustang even expected him to return?

_So thank you for the letters that  
you thought you wrote in vain  
And for the times you chose  
to stand out in the rain  
and wait for me  
For me._

Edward checked his watch and blanched. He had already been late enough for the meeting, but now everyone was probably ready to grill him. Throwing the letters back onto his desk, Edward grabbed a long-sleeved shirt and slipped on a pair of dry boots before running out of his dorm.

The thudding of his heart beating in his ears matched the thudding of his boots against the hard marble floor of the corridors as he flew down the halls like a bat out of Hell. When he finally stopped in front of the doors of Mustang's office he took a few seconds to compose himself before quietly opening the door and slipping in.

When he looked up to face the room, all eyes were on him, some were mad but others were just glad that he had finally made it.

"Please take your seat, Full Metal," Mustang said. "We were just beginning our discussion."

Ed nodded and took his seat between Hawkeye and Fury, ignoring the eyes that followed him.

Mustang took his place in front of the crowd and surveyed everyone. "Okay, in case you all haven't noticed, things on the outside are getting worse every day. War is breaking out across the country and there's nothing we can do to stop it."

A hand shot into the air.

"Yes?"

"If we can't help the war, why are we here talking about it? Obviously we can't do anything to stop it."

Mustang smirked. "We are here talking about it because we need to address the situation. The world around us is going to Hell, whether you are prepared to believe it or not."

Edward stared intently at the man talking before him. Not a hint of distress showed up on Mustang's face, but his eyes told another story. The fact that things were running out of his control was driving Mustang insane. There was a sort of pain and confusion behind the raven-haired man's eyes that Ed had never seen before. Everything going on around him was slowly breaking Mustang down, but he did as best as he could to keep up his act.

Ed closed his eyes. Hell. Yeah, the world was definitely going to Hell and there was nothing anyone could do to stop it.

_Your words, your words help me to see  
A little honesty, in world that doesn't share.  
And your eyes tell the story of your pain  
Severity of your disdain, in a world that doesn't care._

The conference went on, and on, and on. Edward concentrated on Mustang over the duration, watching as the feelings in the man's eyes alternated with each question asked.

When the meeting was finally over, Edward stayed in his seat until the last person walked out of the office and the door closed. Mustang was sitting at his desk with his head in his hands. Edward frowned slightly.

"You hide too much," he whispered.

Mustang jumped and looked up with glazed eyes. "What do you mean?"

Ed smirked slightly. "You hide your feelings too much. It's going to end up killing you one of these days."

"I do it for the people," Mustang muttered, shaking his head. "If I show distress, that's when everyone else will begin to break down. What will happen then?"

Ed shrugged and closed his eyes. "Maybe people will actually begin to see how bad things are on the outside. There are so few places of peace left that the cities are becoming over populated. People are living on the streets in boxes, sleeping under newspapers on park benches. Children are dying from malnutrition. They just don't realize."

When Ed opened his eyes, Mustang was staring at him in disbelief. Ed smirked. "I'm not a kid anymore, Roy; I'm nineteen years old. I don't need to sit in a meeting to know what's going on on the outside."

Mustang smiled. "You're right. You're definitely not a kid anymore."  
Ed laughed quietly and sprawled out on the couch, his hands under his head as he stared at the ceiling. Silence took its place between the two men, a very strained and distraught silence. After a while, Ed spoke.

"Do you remember the letters you wrote to me?" he whispered

"Letters?"

"Yeah. The ones from back when I ran from the military and disappeared. Remember?"

"Oh, those?" Mustang sighed heavily. "Yeah, I remember those."

Ed smiled. "Did you ever expect me to come back? Or did you think that I would just ignore them and leave you alone to handle everything?"

Mustang laughed. "Actually, I never thought you would return. I never thought that I would see your face in Central, or anywhere else for that matter, again."

Silence fell again, then: "Thank you."

"For what?" Mustang asked.

Ed sat up on the couch and locked eyes with Mustang. "If you had never written me… God, I don't even want to think about where I would be right now. Probably dead."

"Why dead?"

"Because ever since Al left all I've wanted to do is die. Coming back here and having something to distract myself sort of took the edge off, but it's always there. It's always waiting for its chance to come out."

Mustang sighed and closed his eyes, putting his head in his hands.

_So thank you for the letters that  
you thought you wrote in vain  
And for the times you chose  
to stand out in the rain, and wait_

"Why did this have to happen?" Mustang whispered after a while.

"Hm?"

"Why did everything have to happen this way? Families being torn apart by death, lives being savagely taken for granted by the military, there was no reason for any of it."

Ed sighed and ran a hand through his hair, pushing it out of his face. "Because everything in this life is based on equivalent exchange, not just alchemy. Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth, life for a life. Remember that? It all applies to our lives as well."

"I guess you're right." Mustang sighed and opened his eyes. "Hey."

Ed glanced at him. "Yeah?"

"Can I ask you a question?" Ed nodded. "Why did you come back?"

Edward smiled slightly. "Personal reasons," he muttered.

Mustang nodded. "I guess that's all I'll get from you. Prying never really got me anywhere in the past, either."

Ed laughed. "Yeah. I've been like that since I was little. Mom never got anything out of me."

Almost immediately after mentioning his mother, a deep sadness fell over Ed. The blonde locked his eyes on the floor and let his hair shield his face from the other man. Tears formed in eyes, threatening to spill over at any moment, and he clenched them shut. Ed grasped his hands in his lap, the cold metal of his automail digging into the soft flesh of his skin, until he felt a thin trail of blood ooze from between his fingers. He sighed heavily and opened his eyes, surprised to see Mustang looking up at him.

Mustang put a hand on Ed's and forced them apart. "We have too much in common for our own goods," he muttered.

Ed's eyes widened and he gasped as his lips were taken up in a chaste kiss.

_You, you understand my pain,  
from this I gather strength  
In that we are the same_

When the two pulled apart Ed smiled breathlessly. "What was that for?" he asked.

Mustang chuckled. "You said that I hide too much, remember?"

Ed nodded and slid down on the floor and into Mustang's lap. "But why me? How could you possibly love me after everything that we've been through?"

"That's just why," Mustang whispered. "Because we've been through so much as a team there's no one else I can trust."

"It's been seven years," Ed breathed, laying his head against Mustang's chest, the steady sound of the man's beating heart relaxing him.

"Yes. Seven long years."

Ed smiled and looked into Mustang's eyes. "You're the reason why I came back," he whispered in a voice just loud enough for the man to hear before he kissed him.

Mustang kissed him back fiercely, pleadingly, passionately… When they pulled apart, they smiled at each other.

"Why did you keep my letters?" Mustang asked.

Ed shrugged. "I have no idea, but I'm glad that I did, even if they were kinda short."

Mustang laughed and punched Ed lightly on the arm. "What did you want from me? Novels?"

_So thank you for the letters that  
you thought you wrote in vain  
And for the times you chose  
to stand out in the rain, and wait  
The life I live would never be the same without you here._

After a night full of passion, the two lay entangled on Mustang's oversized bed. Mustang kissed Ed's forehead as the blonde quietly began to drift.

"You know," Ed whispered, "novels wouldn't have been that bad, ya know? I probably would have come back sooner."

Mustang chuckled and ran his hands gently through Ed's silky blonde locks. "Good night, Ed," he whispered.

"'Night, Roy."

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A/N: Well…what to you think? Was it good? See…it was about as long as a normal one-shot is, right? _shrugs_ Whatever. I hope you all liked it though because I really enjoyed writing it, even though I really don't like the ending. I've had the idea for this in my head ever since I bought the Staind CD but then, of course, my computer had to go out and then be taken to get fixed. But I've finally written it, hopefully to everyone's liking…

And chapter 21 of "ILaH" is in the works, trust me. I'm just having a difficult time writing it. It should be along before Halloween. I know, I know…HALLOWEEN! It seems like a long ways away, but I'm working on the sequel to Halloween fun which is really good and based on a real place and on "Unbeating Heartache" and on my original story "Rayne" on fictionpress, so it's really hard to work. I guess I need a schedule, huh?…

Anywho…I must go. I'll see you all soon in one of my fics. Oh, and please R&R!

Loves to all!


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